Beyond Linear Pathways: A System Dynamics Conceptual Model of Post-Adoption Instability After Foster Care
Monday, July 20, 2026, 11:00 AM
Session: SOC Poster Session (Overflow) (In-person)
Post-adoption instability among children adopted from foster care has significant consequences for child well-being, families, and public systems. Yet variable-centered research inadequately explains how instability emerges through reciprocal interactions among child adversity, caregiver stress, commitment, and service response. This paper develops a system dynamics conceptual model using a causal loop diagram, synthesizing evidence across three layers: pre-permanency adversity, post-adoption family dynamics, and systemic responses. This conceptual model reveals eight reinforcing and two balancing feedback loops mapping how instability escalates, stabilizes, or shifts between formal and informal instability, highlighting leverage points for earlier, more flexible post-permanency support.